Shivamogga: The Department of Labour has registered 34 criminal cases against 18 labour contractors for alleged violation of laws. These labour contractors had bagged the tender from the Mysore Paper Mills (MPM) Ltd., a public sector undertaking at Bhadravati, for cutting trees and transporting the logs to captive plantations of the firm located at various places in the district.
The MPM, which consists of a paper manufacturing unit and a sugar factory, has captive forest plantations measuring 7,500 hectares of land in Shivamogga district. The captive forest plantation supplies the raw materials for the firm. At present, around 3,000 workers, most of whom have migrated to the district from other places, are working on a contract basis in the forest plantation. They perform the routine chores like cutting trees, trimming the wooden logs and loading them to the trucks. They are hired through contractors every year through a tender process.
The firm pays the contract amount to the contractor based on the quantum of work executed and in turn, the contactor is supposed pay the wage for workers.
Earlier, Deputy Commissioner V.P. Ikkeri had convened a meeting here on December 26, 2014 to discuss the conditions of those working on contract basis in captive plantations. Mr. Ikkeri had directed the officials of the Department of Labour to book criminal cases against the contractors, who had failed to provide the benefits for workers for which they were legally entitled. The officials, during their raids on captive plantations, had noticed that many contractors had failed to maintain the payment register and were not issuing pay slips to the workers, which were mandatory practices specified in the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
In addition, it was found that the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, had also been violated as the contractors had not obtained the licence from the Assistant Commissioner of Labour to hire workers. Identity cards and facilities like rest rooms were also not provided to the workers. The department had issued notices to the contractors concerned, seeking an explanation from them for the alleged lapses. As the contractors failed to provide a satisfactory reply, the District Labour Officer booked cases against them in February this year with the Judicial Magistrate First Class Court here under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 and the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970.
Most of such workers are said to have migrated from other districts
Contractors have not maintained any payment register nor issued pay slips to workers
